Can-opener.



No. 809,527. PATENTBD JAN. 9, 1906.

H. B. RAY. CAN OPENER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 8, 1905.

WITNESSES IN VE N T0,?

A 7TOBNE Y UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1906.

Application filed April 8, 1906. Serial No. 254,497.

To all whmn it may concern/.2

Be it known .that I, HERBERT B. RAY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bridgeport, county of F airfield, State of Connecticut,

have invented anew and useful Can-Opener,

of which the following is a specification.

My invention has for its obect to provide a simple and inexpensive can-opener that will open round cans of any size within reasonable limits by a single direct out, which will be durableand practically impossible to get.

out of repair, which shall be neat and attracr tive in appearance, and which may be produced in quantities at such trifling cost as to enable it to be retailed at a price. placing it within the reach of all.

With these ends inview I have devised the simple and novel can-opener, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification,

reference characters being used to indicate.

the several parts.

Figure 1 is a perspective illustrating the construction and operation of my novel can opener; and Fig. 2 1s a sectional view, on agreatly-enlarged scale, of the cutter de,

I taehe 13, and is preferably offset, as at 14.

My novel can-opener comprises two essen-.

tial parts-to wit, a circular cutter and a cariier on which the cutter both rotates and slides freely. A denotes the carrier as a whole, The carrier comprises a may or may not be provided with a shoulder The shank, handle, and prong may be made from a single piece of wire, one end of which may be formed into a loop or into any convenient shape to form the handle, or, if preferred, a metallic or wooden handle may be attached to a straight shank in the usual or in any preferred manner. 'As the attachment of a separate handle to a shankis common in all classes of tools, it is not thought to require illustration.

The cutter comprises a cutting-disk, (indicated by 15,)a rest, (indicated by 16,) and a guide-disk, (indicated b 17.) These parts may be made separatey and secured toget er or may be made in a single piece, as indicated in the drawings. The prong 18 shown i as reduced from the stock of the shank. The-s central opening in the cutter, which I have indicated by 18, receives the shank freely, so that the cutter will both rotate and slide thereon. The inner face of the cutting-disk der.

-ment is moved around.

' article of manufacture and sale.

In assembling the cutter is simply passed on the shank with. the guide-disk toward the handle end, and then the prong is offset, which retains the cutter in placeon the shank, permitting it to slide freely from the ofiset to the handle.

The operation is as follows: The prong is forced downward through the center of the top of the can, the passage of the shank ver far into the can being prevented by the shou The shank is then pressed down and the cutter placed in engagement with the edge of the can, the'cutting-disk lying withinthe edge of the can and the guide-disk engaging the outer face of the edge of the can. The cutting-disk is then pressed down through the top of the can and the implement swung around by means of the handle, the cutter cutting its way through the top as the imple- T he convex inner face of the cutting-disk and forward projection of the cutting edge prevent the cuttingdisk from riding up on the top of the can, and

the guide-disk retains the cutter in operative leaving that portion to serve as a hinge for I the top, which may be lifted over out of the way to permit removal of the contents of the can, but without entirely detaching the top from the can. By using the implement in this manner the top may be cut out in a true circle close to the edge of the can and without leaving rough and jagged points of metal to mutilate and break up the contents of the can and toinjure the hand of the operator.

Obviously the cutter B may, be a separate if one cut ter is worn out or damageil,another one may be substituted therefor. For instance, the

' loop or handle 11 may be forced open enoughto enable a worn cutter to be slid around the loop and removed and a new cutter placed on the shank 10 by a reversal of the movement described.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. A can-opener comprising a shank having a prong adapted to be forced through the center of a can-top and a cutter free to both rotate and slide on the shank and comprising a cutting-disk, a rest adapted to engage the edge of a can and a guide-disk adapted to en gage the outer face of a can, the relative sizes of said disks being such as to permit the guide-disk to project below the plane of the top edge of the can when the cutting-disk is severing the top of the can.

2. A can-opener comprising a shank having a prong adapted to be forced through the center of a can-top and a cutter free to both rotate and slide on the shank and comprising a cutting-disk convex on its-inner face and havinga forwardly-projecting cutting edge,

for the purpose setforth, a rest to engage the edge of a can and a guide-disk to engage the outer face of said can to retain the cutter in operative position, the relative sizes of said disks being such as to permit theguide-disk to project below the plane of the top edge of the can when the cutting-disk is severing the top of the can.

3. The cutter B comprising a rotary cuttingdisk, a rest adapted to enga "e the edge of a can and a guide-disk adapte to engage the outer face of a can, said disks and rest being integral, and the relative sizes of said disks being such as to permit the guide-disk to project below the plane of the top edge of the can when the cutting-disk is severing the top of the can.

In tcstimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

HERBERT B.'RAY.

Witnesses:

O. R. WII1TNEY, MARGARET R YOUNG. 

